


New Families, Unwritten Stories

by ForxGood



Series: Final chapters, Blank pages [4]
Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Cursing!Erin, Dad!Holtz, F/F, Husband!Holtz, we have fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:49:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22212847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForxGood/pseuds/ForxGood
Summary: Erin gives birth, and tries not to kill and/or dump Holtzmann in the process. 4th and final(?) part in a series.
Relationships: Erin Gilbert/Jillian Holtzmann
Series: Final chapters, Blank pages [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1597240
Comments: 5
Kudos: 35





	New Families, Unwritten Stories

**Author's Note:**

> The usual note on how you really should read the first 3 parts in this series for context, probably. Regardless, this is the end of this universe, at least for now. Thank you all for sticking with me through essentially my writing revival. I love you all.

Holtzmann awkwardly pulled on her tie, not liking being around so many people. These in-university conferences were never fun, but it was important to put up a good front and impress everyone, to secure funding for a little bit longer. Holtz had given her big presentation, and she thought it had gone well, but now was the wine and cheese mixer, something she really didn’t like. She needed a break. She had a very strict ‘phones off while working’ policy which she had been glad to do when it meant she was getting a decent amount of work done, but being in such a big room with a lot of loud people had made her anxiety climb, and she needed an escape. Calling to see how Erin was doing was a good excuse as any.

Pulling herself into the corner of the room, she pulled her phone out and waited for it to turn on, not being able to help the smile gracing her face and the gooey feeling in her stomach as she saw a text message from Erin waiting. She opened it up, but her smile slowly vanished as she read it. In true Erin style, the text contained way too many emojis, but that wasn’t what made Holtzmann pale.

Erin’s water had broken. Erin was having the baby.

Holtz’s heart rate sped up as she checked when Erin had sent it. 

Four hours ago. 

_Crap._

She needed to get the hell out of there and find Erin. Luckily, they had already chosen the hospital that Erin would deliver at, and it was a short drive, so she should be there in half an hour. Holtz frowned as she came up with a plan in her head, and didn’t notice the dean of the university approaching her.

“Miss. Holtzmann, are you quite alright?” He asked, peering at her with a concerned look on his face.

Holtzmann blinked at him for a moment, her mouth agape. “Yeah. I’m alright. I’m really alright. I’m gonna have a baby.” She said, half-stunned.

The older man gave her a surprised smile. “Oh, well, that is quite wonderful. When did you find out?”

But Holtzmann wasn’t listening, and she let a massive, gaping grin take over her face, as she raised her hands in two fists above her head, jumping up and down.

“I’M GONNA BE A DAD, DEAN WETHERBY! I GOTTA GO!”

She threw herself on the very shocked old man for a celebratory hug, before jumping off him and sprinting full-speed out of the function hall. She jogged through the university to where she knew her car would be. Luckily Erin seemed upbeat in that text message, which must mean that it had been going well when she sent it, so hopefully it would all be okay. She just hoped that she wasn’t too late, but she had a gut feeling that Erin would’ve texted her again if she was too late.

It was truly a miracle that Holtz managed to not get pulled over for speeding on her way to the hospital, and as she rushed through the building, she even managed to stop for some chai sugar cookies at the gift shop, something she knew would put a smile on her beautiful girlfriend’s face. She couldn’t help the grin on her face as she told a nurse where she needed to go, and was hopping up and down on her heels as the nurse opened the door to a room.

“I heard someone was having a baby.” She poked her head into the room, giving Erin a grin. A grin which quickly faded when she saw the daggers Erin was glaring at her.

“Where the _hell_ have you been!” She growled, looking nothing short of murderous at the blonde, her fists gripping the sheets so tight her knuckles had turned white.

Holtz felt the smile slowly fall from her face as she took in the almost hysterical sight in front of her; Erin lying on the bed, her hair in a messy bun, looking like she wanted to completely pummel Holtzmann. It would be hilarious if Holtz wasn’t so confused. She frowned, pulling out her phone to find the text. “I had to turn my phone off at the conference. You… uh… you said everything was fine.” She replied, starting to fear for her life a little bit.

“It was. _4 hours ago!_ ” Erin spoke through gritted teeth, still glaring at Holtzmann as if she could somehow be to blame for her current situation. When Erin’s water had first broken, the brunette had stayed calm, knowing stress was not only bad for the baby, but would actually speed up the labour process, which she didn’t really need right now. So she had driven herself to the hospital, texting Holtzmann before she got into the car, assuring her girlfriend everything would be fine. And she thought it would. She had everything planned, everything under control, everything was going to plan.

What she had forgotten about was how much _agonizing pain_ she would be in, not 30 minutes after she sent that text. And those were just the first contractions. By the time she was 3 hours in, and knowing it was apparently still too early for the epidural, Erin was in _P A I N_. Agonizing, horrible pain. Made all the more worse by the fact that aside from the nurse taking care of her, she was all alone.

(It was moments like these where her thoughts went back to Phil, and the indescribable need she felt to break his nose).

Needless to say, by the time Holtzmann did finally storm through the doors, her welcome was a lot less warm than Erin had intended it to be. Holtzmann seemed to sense as much. Clearing her throat, she decided on a different tactic, so she walked into the room to stand next to her girlfriend, leaning down to take Erin’s hand, pressing a kiss against it, her other hand holding out the box of cookies. “I have snacks for you, your favorites, I picked them up on my way in.” 

“Do I look in _any_ state to eat right now, Holtzmann? I’m about to push a _small human_ out of my _body_!” Erin did feel herself calm down a little when Holtz took her hand, Erin opting to squeeze that instead of the bedsheet when a next contraction ripped through her, making her groan in pain. As Erin squeezed her hand, Holtz swallowed a shriek of her own. Erin was strong on a good day, but this was something else; it was like her bones were being crushed.

“…gaaaah, we’re gonna switch hands now.” Holtz replied, somehow detaching her right hand from Erin’s grip and substituting it with her left hand. She could definitely see that this wasn’t going to be a pleasant experience until Erin could get her epidural, so she steadied herself to be ready for the next however many hours of Erin yelling at her.

Just as she was thinking about that, a nurse walked back in. Undoubtedly, she’d heard Erin yelling at the blonde from down the hallway.

“Don’t take it too personally.” The woman smiled reassuringly at Holtzmann. “It’s perfectly normal for women in labor to yell at their husbands, or significant others. Labour is… Not a pleasant process.”

As the word ‘husband’ escaped the nurse’s lips, Holtzmann couldn’t help the smirk that spread across her face. Erin’s husband. Holtzmann the husband. It had a nice ring to it, and she couldn’t get over the idea that she was Erin’s significant other. She leaned down, giving her girlfriend a smirk. “Hey, I’m your husband.” She teased, trying to lighten the mood.

“If you don’t stop complaining about pain in your _hand_ you’re going to be my _ex_ -husband.” Erin growled, linking her fingers with Holtzmann’s in possibly a half-hearted attempt to stop Holtz from letting go of her hand again. “Jesus christ, are we _sure_ a baby was meant to come out of my body like this?” She panted a little, closing her eyes and trying not to scream as another contraction ripped through her.

Despite being hissed at by Erin, Holtzmann couldn’t drop the grin on her face as the word ‘husband’ bounced around in her head. It was a cute word, a word dripping with affection, and even when it was being paired with the word ‘ex’ while Erin cursed her out, it was so lovely to hear.

She took a deep breath, taking her free hand to run her fingers through Erin’s hair, pushing it back from her forehead and pressing a soft kiss there. “Okay, take deep breaths, it’s going to be okay. I’m here.” She brought Erin’s hand up to her lips, pressing soft kisses against it. She winced watching Erin, knowing how much pain the brunette must be going through, and it killed her to know that there was nothing she could do to stop it.

“Look, Erin, it’s gonna suck for a while, but then you’ll have your shot that’ll make it hurt less, and then you’ll have your baby!” She grinned at her, hoping that her positive attitude would somehow rub off on Erin. “But you gotta get through this first, and I know you can do it, because you’re the freakin’ strongest person I know.”

“Easy for you to say, you’re not the one giving birth.” Erin complained, looking at Holtz with a strange mixture of annoyance and sheer gratitude. She wasn’t really in any state to admit it, but she was glad Holtzmann was here. It felt good, knowing she didn’t have to be alone during this. 

It didn’t make it hurt any less, but it was a comfort to know her girlfriend was there beside her.

“I’m afraid the epidural won’t make it hurt that much less, Miss Holtzmann.” The nurse, Evelyn, chimed in. “We use it to make sure it doesn’t hurt as much as it usually would. It’s still not a pleasant process.”

Holtzmann usually wasn’t a confrontational or angry person, but the look that she shot at the nurse after she let Erin know that her pain wouldn’t lessen much was nothing short of daggered. She didn’t want to argue, because obviously the nurse knew better, but it didn’t help the whole comforting vibe that she was trying to surround Erin with.

Because, honestly, she was so in awe of what the brunette was doing. She’d seen Erin through the entire pregnancy, and yeah, that had already been so impressive, but she was actually gonna be giving birth. Erin was having a baby. It was something Holtz knew she could never do, and the awe of it all only made her love Erin more. 

Not that she’d ever voice this with Erin’s current state.

Erin cried out a little as another contraction ripped through her, looking up at Holtz as she squeezed her hand. “One more word about your hand and I swear to god, Holtz.” But Holtzmann was smart enough to grit her teeth and grin and bear it, determined not to let the pain of Erin’s iron finger grip show.. Instead she leaned down to press her lips against Erin’s temple, her other hand running through the brunette’s hair, pulling her fringe back from her forehead in a desperate attempt to cool the taller girl down.

“You’re doing so great. You got this far without me here, and now I’m here and it’s all gonna be easier, yeah?” She whispered, pressing a kiss to Erin’s skin. “And then you’re gonna have your little baby, that’s gonna be amazing, right?”

“I fucking _hate_ this baby.” Erin growled, squeezing Holtzmann’s hand even tighter as another contraction ripped through her. Oh yeah, this was going to be a long, painful process, and Erin was just about ready to murder someone. Preferably Phil.

********

The entire process ended up taking 18 hours, including the ones Holtz had missed. 18 hours, several death threats, a lot of ice chips, and more cursing than Erin had ever done in her entire life. Occasionally, Holtzmann had had to step outside the room to calm her racing heart when it got a little too intense and she got overwhelmed. She hated leaving Erin for those short intervals, but she wanted to actually be there properly for her girlfriend, and if she’d started crying from overstimulation, then it wouldn’t have helped Erin at all.

Luckily, the last half hour of actual pushing had been easier for Holtz to get through, and while holding her girlfriend’s hand and encouraging her along, she couldn’t help just watching Erin’s face as it happened, so in awe of what this woman who she loved was doing, wanting to press kisses all over her skin. And then, there’d been the sharp sound of a baby’s scream and suddenly, Erin had a baby.

So Holtz stood there, panting slightly as she watched Erin hold the baby who was now wrapped in a soft white blanket, her head cocked to the side, trying to take in this… this person. This tiny little person who her girlfriend had made. Erin looked nothing short of radiant as she looked at the little girl - because of course it was a girl, a mother is always right about those things - in her arms. 

“She’s beautiful….”

Taking a step forward, Holtz moved her hand to softly brush her fingertip against the tiny arm that poked out of the blanket, amazed at how smooth her skin was. She looked like Erin, same eyes and nose. And Erin looked so beautiful holding her, so radiant, and a half-smile crept across Holtz’s face as she took in the sight before her. She was looking at a family.

She was looking at her family.

“She is.” Holtzmann whispered. “So beautiful.”

“Little Rory Gilbert.” Erin spoke softly, feeling not even the least bit capable of looking away from her newborn child, even if it was to glance over at her girlfriend. “My Rory.”

“Rory…” Holtzmann murmured, before frowning, a grin on her face. “That’s like… Aurora. Aurora Borealis. Y’know, the northern lights?” She grinned, humming at her musing, always getting a little kick out of making obscure connections in her head that nobody else would really trace.

Erin laughed softly at Holtz’s comment, her gaze never moving away from Rory. “Aurora… I like that.” She said, smiling at the baby girl in her arms. “Aurora Hedy Gilbert. My beautiful baby girl.”

She could hardly fathom that the baby, the tiny little human she was holding right now, was her. It was _her_ baby, _her_ little girl. Well, her and Holtz’s, in a way, but Holtzmann hadn’t carried her for the past 9 months. Hadn’t gone through the labor process the way she had. This baby girl was hers, and Erin vowed to protect her for the rest of her days. Nothing was going to happen to her girl, not if she could help it. Her baby, her daughter, was going to grow up loved and accepted and _believed_ , no matter what.

“She’s so tiny…” Her voice was barely a whisper as she looked at the little girl, not even daring to touch her hand for fear that she might break. “I can’t believe she’s real.”

Rory’s eyes were shut, her tiny eyelashes pressed against her cheeks, one tiny hand curled around a lock of Erin’s hair. Already, she seemed to know who her mom was, and if Holtz knew Erin at all, she knew that nothing was going to get within two feet of that little baby without Erin’s permission. And as Holtz kept watching her, so entranced by this tiny bundle of a person, she realized that she’d do the same. She’d cross any ocean, fight any battle, for the two people in front of her. She’d wage any war, if it meant that Erin and Rory would be safe, happy and together.

“Yeah, she looks like you.” Holtz murmured, leaning her head the other way, as if it would give her a different angle to look at the little girl with. “She looks a lot like you.” A half smile flitted across Holtzmann’s face. “I can’t believe you made her.”

Very carefully, Erin leaned forward to press a soft kiss to her daughter’s forehead, careful not to wake her. She was feeling very tired herself, but she simply couldn’t bring herself to let go of her girl just yet. “I think she has my nose.” She giggled a little, before finally casting just the quickest glance at Holtz. “I think she looks a little like you, somehow. Is that weird?”

Holtz watched Erin kiss her daughter, and it took everything she had not to cry at the simple gesture. God, she’d kill for the two of them. It wasn’t even a dramatic statement. If anyone, anything, tried to ruin what was in front of her, they’d be destroyed. Holtzmann would make sure of it.

At Erin’s words, she gave the brunette a teasing confused look, peering at Rory’s little face. “Nah, she’s got too much Erin in there. But I don’t know… maybe I’ve been around you so much that she picked up some of my features. If she’s an amazing dancer, then she definitely did.” She joked.

“Are you implying I’m not a good dancer?” Erin mock-gasped at her, before looking back at Rory. “Don’t listen to Holtzy, baby. Mommy is an amazing dancer. If you’re gonna be a dancer when you grow up just know you got all those skills from me.”

Holtzmann laughed at that, her heart feeling like it was about to burst it was so overflowing with love for the two people in that hospital bed. Even after the grueling labour process, Erin could still manage to crack jokes with Holtzmann, and the blonde was nothing short of impressed.

She watched the two of them for a moment, wanting nothing more than to stay in this moment forever. She knew she’d never felt this much love before. It was so overwhelming, but not in the way that would usually upset her. It was like she was overwhelmed with peace, like she didn’t care what else happened for the rest of her life, as long as this would never end.

“You look good with her.” She whispered to Erin. “You look… like you were always meant to hold her. You look so beautiful.”

Giggling, Erin felt her heart melt a little at Holtzmann’s next words. Her girlfriend was right, at least in reading the mood. Erin felt amazing, holding Rory, her daughter. All the fears she had about motherhood were still there, but they were muted, pushed to the background. It was as if nothing mattered in this world, nothing but Rory and Holtz, her own little family. “I feel the same way…”

Looking up at Holtzmann, Erin gave her a nervous smile. “Would you like to hold her?”

That question took Holtzmann by surprise. She could only gape for a few minutes as she processed those words in her mind, trying not to let that overwhelm her. Because Erin wanted her to hold her baby. Her. Holtzmann. Erin trusted _her_ with her newborn child. It made Holtzmann want to cry, her emotions threatening to overtake her completely. But she pushed that down, instead nodding awkwardly, a little stilted.

Erin, to her credit, didn’t seem offended at Holtzmann’s lack of enthusiasm. She knew her girlfriend, knew how overwhelming certain gestures could be to the blonde. She had expected nothing less than a stilted response from Holtzmann, or awkward movements, or the clear terror in those blue eyes as Holtz was undoubtedly thinking about all the ways she could accidentally kill Rory before she was even a few hours old. But unlike the engineer herself, Erin had full faith in Holtzmann. There was truly no one else she’d trust her daughter with.

Once Holtzmann had composed herself enough, Erin carefully handed the baby off to her, Holtzmann’s movements still stiff as she tried to find the perfect balance of holding Rory tight enough that she wouldn’t drop her, but not so tight that she’d accidentally crush the tiny child. Because Rory was _tiny_. And light. And fragile.

And Holtzmann had never seen a more beautiful thing in her entire life.

(Except maybe Erin.)

The blonde didn’t speak as she held Erin’s baby, only staring at the little girl. She didn’t trust herself with words right now; she doubted she’d ever find the right ones to describe this feeling she was having even if she lived a million years. All her inventions combined couldn’t hold a candle to this tiny little human in her arms. A tiny little human who just began to yawn, and a little pink hand reached up to graze Holtzmann’s face before Rory seemed to go back to sleep.

Holtzmann, who was sure she’d otherwise drop the baby out of shock, quickly handed the little girl back to Erin, who was beaming at her and smiling with an expression so full of love that Holtzmann quickly left the room. She loudly cleared her throat, hoping to compose herself, and hoping she was far enough away that she wasn’t waking Erin’s baby.

As she left the room, she didn’t see Erin casting a worried look her way. A worried look which was quickly replaced by a soft laugh. The brunette still found it endearing how caring Holtzmann could be. It broke her heart sometimes to see how unused Holtzmann was to love, or affection, or positive emotions, but she’d learned that that was just part of who Holtzmann was. And Erin loved everything about her. The good as well as the bad. It made her heart sing to know that even while Holtzmann was overwhelmed, she had taken the extra moments to try so hard not to wake Rory.

It cemented that there was no doubt in Erin’s mind that Holtzmann would love this child as much as Erin did. It made her confident that Rory would grow up loved, _so_ loved. More loved than she had anticipated when she’d first found out about the little girl’s imminent existence.

When Holtzmann returned, Erin yawned, the exertions of the day and the whirlwind of emotions finally showing themselves. The engineer simply sat down next to her, taking Erin’s hand and pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.

“You ‘kay?” Erin mumbled sleepily, looking over at Holtzmann. The engineer’s eyes were bloodshot, clearly from tears she’d been trying and failing to hold back, but the blonde merely nodded.

“Peachy keen, jelly bean.” 

Erin snorted softly in response, squeezing Holtzmann’s hand in acknowledgement before turning her gaze back to Rory. The little girl was fully oblivious to the two women watching over her, unaware of the future that lay before her. A future of trials and tribulations, of scraped knees and broken hearts. Of more science than she could ever wrap her head around, and one of ghosts and a family that would never seem to stop growing. But even now, part of her could sense the two beings who would be at the center of it all. Her parents, who would shower her with praise and love and understanding, who would love her as much as they loved each other. 

And as she grew, she’d be emulating both of them. She’d have her mother’s looks and wits, sure; that was how genetics worked. But in all the years she’d spend on this planet, no one would ever question Jillian Holtzmann as her second parent.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, I'm @ForxGood on any social media that matters. If you like my writing, and you like badass ladies, and you like wlw, I wanna quickly recommend my other works on this site. Also, I wanna recommend the TV series Galavant and Good Omens in general. They're available on Netflix & Amazon Prime, respectively. Thank you all for reading, see you in my next universes


End file.
